Prenatal maternal stress impacts fetal growth that can be assessed using cortisol profiles. However, the association between maternal mental health, cortisol profile, and fetal growth remains unclear. This study assessed the cortisol awakening response (CAR) and diurnal cortisol slope (DCS) as the cortisol profile. Healthy pregnant women (N=44, 20 mid-term, 24 late-term; mean age, 29.3 years) participated in this study. Participants’ mental health was assessed using the General Health Questionnaire, and saliva samples were collected eight times a day for cortisol assessment. The latent growth curve analysis of diurnal cortisol changes using Hierarchical Linear Modeling showed that the intercept and the negative slope were significant. The effects of these intercepts and slopes on the gestation period and birth weight were examined through multiple regression analyses. The results showed that only DCS had a marginally negative association with infant’s birth weight (β=−.52, p<.10), after controlling for confounding factors. The DCS might be a better tool for assessing the mental health status during pregnancy, which could also be a better predictor of the birth weight than CAR.

Delayed cardiovascular recovery is associated with negative emotions and ruminative thoughts. Many studies have used a speech task with evaluative observation to elicit these psychophysiological responses. However, it is unclear if the responses are caused by evaluative apprehension through observation or the emotional load of the speech task. The current study investigated whether evaluative observation accompanied by a speech task was sufficient to delay cardiovascular recovery after having negative emotions and ruminative thoughts. Undergraduates (N=35) were divided into the evaluative observation group that conducted a speech task with evaluative observation and the control group that conducted a speech task without evaluative observation. The evaluative observation group showed prolonged negative emotional responses, increased ruminative thoughts, and delayed recovery of systolic and diastolic blood pressure through the mediation of prolonged cardiac output in the post-task period. These results suggest that evaluative observation plays a critical role in cardiovascular recovery via psychological responses.

Heart rate variability (HRV) refers to heart rate fluctuations that are characterized by normal beat-to-beat changes in cardiovascular autonomic control. HRV has been widely used in psychophysiology and related areas to investigate the activity of the autonomic nervous system. This article focuses on high frequency (HF) and low frequency (LF) components of HRV, and reviews (a) their autonomic neural regulation, (b) relationship between the increase in HRV and psychophysiological adaptation, and (c) therapeutic effects of resonance between respiratory sinus arrhythmia and baroreflex function. Given that autonomic functions supporting homeostasis are an oscillation system, the analysis of HRV is considered to be a useful tool for evaluating psychological factors such as stress and relaxation. Moreover, the resonance property of HRV might make a critical contribution to health promotion.

In critical situations, such as the exposure to acute stress, we often make irrational choices. Biological responses to critical events stimulate the autonomic nervous system, the endocrine system, and the immune system, which regulate decision-making via those regions of the brain concerned with updating information and processing emotions. Previous studies have revealed that such biological responses have temporal effects on cognition and behavior. The current review summarizes empirical findings that investigate how acute stress affects decision-making and cognitive functions. We focus on neural and biological mechanisms as temporal factors and discuss their adaptive roles as aspects of cognitive functions in response to critical events.

In recent years, region-oriented education emphasizing the relationship between local people and universities has become an important field of study in Japan. In situations of severe stress for children, where stress management education should play a significant role, psychophysiologists are indispensable. Such education consists of (1) activities that help participants understand the concept of stress, (2) activities that develop participants’ awareness of changes in the body caused by stress, and (3) activities that encourage the mastery of stress coping strategies. Psychophysiologists are expected to provide educational opportunities, particularly those related to the second process, in their regional communities. Recently, it has become possible to measure physiological activities at a low cost by using open-source assets. In this Technical Note, we introduce measuring devices that were developed using open source assets with case examples of their use in practical training. We have discussed problems that were noted with the devices during the training.